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My main responsibilities are:
I am
responsible for the firm’s Atlanta based
operations to include Facilities Services,
Office Services and Conference Services at
our three Atlanta facilities. I’m also
involved with developing firm-wide
operational policies, procedures and
contracts.
I
became a legal administrator:
As I
prepared to retire from the Marine Corps my
mentors told me that former military
officers are a good fit for the legal office
administration profession. After some
research I found that my leadership and
administrative skills were highly compatible
with legal administration. Soon after
retirement I was fortunate enough to find a
great firm where I could use my leadership
and administrative skills in an operational
environment.
The thing I like best about being a
legal administrator is
being able to
make a positive impact each day in
supporting our Attorneys and Staff.
The thing I like least about being a
legal administrator is
herding cats.
Legal administration of attorneys and staff
is a lot like herding cats – they don’t
always do what you ask them to, but they do
know how to use the litter box!
The hardest situation I have had to
deal with Is
driving
through I-75 traffic to and from work in
Mid-Town.
A major issue facing legal
administrators today is
implementing
change in an increasingly fast-paced and
technology-driven profession.
To be successful, legal administrators
have to be good communicators,
flexible and be able to rapidly shift focus
on the myriad of issues they are confronted
with each day.
As a
legal administrator, I never thought I'd
have to bring one of my Persian rugs
from home to support an office event. It’s a
long story!
The best advice I’ve received from a
fellow legal administrator is
never
hesitate to use the legal administration
network for advice and try to find a bit of
humor in everything you do.
I think legal administrators are important
to the legal industry because
they are the
glue holding their administrative structure
together and the oil that ensures daily
operations move along smoothly.
I knew I was in the right profession when
my ability to plan and make timely decisions
was valued by the Attorneys and Staff I
supported.
In the office, I try to set an example
by finding a way to say yes to all
requests or at least work hard toward a
mutual agreeable solution.
I try to encourage my staff to
provide excellence in customer service at
all times and to remember that customers are
our clients, attorneys or other staff
members.
If I wasn’t a legal administrator I
would be a teacher.
I joined
ALA/AALA
because
I have always been
involved in professional organizations in my
previous career. In the past I found
organizations like the Society of Logistics
Engineers, the Marine Corps Association, and
the Military Officers Association of America
to be highly beneficial in honing my
professional skills and as a way to assist
others who require assistance with their
professional careers.
ALA/AALA
are great organizations that offer a wealth
of information and opportunity to their
members.
I use my membership in
ALA/AALA
by
attending the monthly AALA Speaker Series
meetings, networking with other legal
administrators, using the
ALA
and
AALA
websites as a professional resource,
studying for the CLM and the ability to
attend ALA National Conferences.
Three words that best describe me are
Honor, Courage and Commitment. These are the
three Marine Corps core values and they
still hold special meaning to me.
My plans for the
next 10 years include taking the CLM
exam and continuing to develop my legal
administration skills. I will also continue
and help others reach their personal and
work-related goals.
The last good movie I saw was
Ken Burns’ The War. It is a PBS
documentary about World War II from the
perspective of citizens from four towns in
the United States.
Recent good books I read are Our
Iceberg is Melting by John Katter and
Holger Rathgeber. Also Lone Survivor
by Marcus Luttrell.
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